


The Knight of York

by fandomgurl77



Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: :), :O, ;), Amazement, Confusion, Gen, I don't know how this will turn out, Knights - Freeform, Period-Typical Homophobia, Secret Identity, Violence, Whoa!, Wow, and overjoyed, armour, chris is a narcissist, hey!, huh?, i don't know how many characters there will be, inspired by randy cunningham 9th grade ninja, mission, more tags will be added as the story continues, only in it for the fame, richard is abducted, so i tagged everyone else anyway, staring blankly, thomas is flabbergasted, time is of the essence, updating may be slow please be patient, will the secret be kept?, writing as i think of more ideas, you'll have to wait and see what i mean
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:26:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,335
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26678950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomgurl77/pseuds/fandomgurl77
Summary: Thomas is overjoyed when he discovers a knight's helmet in his room one night.He's even more flabbergasted when he reads the accompanying note.Meanwhile, Richard Ellis is abducted by criminals and bought to York to work as a slave...Rated M for violence, death and swearing.Inspired by one of my favourite cartoons of the 2010s: Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja.
Relationships: Thomas Barrow/Richard Ellis
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

‘Blimey’, Thomas said as he sat down at the head of the table, ‘What a day it’s been; I’m completely knackered!’

‘Tell me about it’, Mrs. Patmore said from the sink, ‘We could all use a little shut eye, especially after this afternoon; I and Daisy were run ragged down here thanks to _that_ lot upstairs.’

‘I’m just thankful the party’s over and they’re gone, to be honest’, Thomas said, ‘A bunch of right boars, they were; not that I’d dare mention it, of course.’

‘Well’, Mrs. Patmore said, ‘As much as I hate to admit it, ‘I have to agree with you calling them “boars”.’

‘Thank goodness there’s at least _someone_ who is of the same opinion as me’, Thomas said, ‘I hated them all, especially a _certain_ snappy old bag of a woman…’

‘Yes’, Mrs. Patmore said, ‘I don’t think anyone liked Mrs. Paulson one bit; she spent the whole afternoon moaning and complaining about everything, from the way people were dressed and how lunch was – or supposedly _wasn’t_ – planned or served properly, to the weather and the décor. She even commented on a near invisible scuff mark on the Dining Room door, for crying out loud!’

‘I know’, Thomas said, ‘Like _who_ would be observant enough to notice a tiny imperfection like that?’

‘It does sound rather sad if you’re going to complain about every minute detail like she did’, Mrs. Patmore said.

‘Yes, I know what you mean’, Thomas said, ‘You _can’t_ come to visit someone in their _own home_ , expect everything to be perfect and complain if it’s not; it’s ludicrous!’

‘I agree’, Mrs. Patmore said while pulling the plug out of the sink, causing a gurgling sound as the water flowed out through the pipe, ‘Anyway, we best call it a day; it’s getting late.’

‘I think so too’, Thomas said upon standing up before realising something, ‘You know what? It’s just occurred to me now that we’re the only two people in here.’

‘That’s because everyone else went up to bed hours ago’, Mrs. Patmore said.

‘I see’, Thomas said before leaving the room, ‘I suppose I should join them then.’

‘Ok then, Mr. Barrow’, Mrs. Patmore said, ‘Goodnight.’

_‘Finally’_ , Thomas thought upon closing his door before walking over to the bed and sitting down, where he noticed something wasn’t quite right.

 _‘Ouch’_ , he thought upon standing up again, only to see what looked like a round object under the blanket, _‘What in the world? That’s funny, I don’t remember my bed having such a big lump in the centre…’_

However, when he pulled the blanket down to see what was under it, he was astounded to see a metal knight’s helmet.

 _‘Where did this come from?’_ he thought just as a piece of paper fell out onto the floor.

 _‘What’s this?’_ he thought as he picked it up and read the note.

_To the recipient of this helmet,_

_You have been selected to be the next Knight of York due to your bravery, courage and loyalty. Put the helmet on and a full suit of armour will magically appear._

_‘Ok’_ , Thomas that before putting it on, _‘Here goes nothing…’_

Suddenly, he was surrounded by a white light as his body was covered head to toe in metal armour, just as the note had promised.

 _‘Whoa!’_ he thought _‘I can’t believe it; I am the Knight of York!’_

_‘This is amazing!’_ he thought, _‘I’m going to tell everyone!’_

As if on cue, another part of the note that he had not seen grabbed his attention.

_‘You can’t let anyone know about this.’_

_‘Bugger’_ , he thought disappointedly as he took the helmet off, causing the suit to disappear, _‘Everyone would have been thrilled to know about this.’_


	2. Chapter 2

At 10:30 the next morning, Anna was returning from having run an errand for Lady Mary when a scruffy-looking man suddenly grabbed and started to drag her towards the woods.

AAAHHH!’she screamed in desperation, the ordeal triggering a flashback of that “horrific incident” involving Mr. Green, ‘Someone please help!!!’

‘Shut up, bitch!’ the man shouted as he stuffed a rag into her mouth, ‘You’re as good as mine!’

As she was inching ever closer to whatever fate awaited her amongst the trees where no-one could see, Anna knew that struggling would only result in being reprimanded, so she decided to comply with the man’s demands.

‘Take me wherever you want to’, she said, although it came out muffled thanks to the obstruction, ‘I’ll do anything you want.’

‘Good’, the man said as they arrived at a clearing, because I…’

Suddenly, they both saw a quick flash of silver coming from deeper in the woods.

‘What the?’ the man asked in confusion.

‘Let her go’, a deep, masculine voice replied as a silver-clad figure appeared.

‘Wha…’ the man said nervously, Y-you’re t-the…the…’

‘Yes’, the figure said, ‘I’m the Knight of York. Now, let this fair maiden go or there’ll be consequences!’

‘NEVER!!!’ the man screamed in his face, only to be reprimanded with a punch to the stomach, causing him to keel over in pain.

‘You’re free to go’, the mysterious knight said to Anna as he removed the rag covering her mouth, ‘I’ll take care of this brute.’

‘Thank you, mysterious knight’, Anna said before making a quick getaway, not knowing that the knight was Thomas Barrow.

On arrival back at Downton, she turned around and saw the man who had abducted her being led away in handcuffs by two policemen, while the knight seemed to have disappeared.

After lunch, Anna told Mary what had happened that morning.

‘…So, milady’, she said, ‘I was dragged into the woods by a scruffy-looking man - goodness knows what he was planning to do to me – and then a knight in silver armour turned up and set me free.’

‘Hold it’, Mary said, ‘Did you just say a knight rescued you?’

‘Yes, milady’, Anna said, ‘He said he was the Knight of York.’

‘So’, Mary said, ‘The legend is true then.’

‘What legend?’ Anna asked.

‘You see, Anna’, Mary said, ‘Legend has it that the city of York and the surrounding villages and towns have been protected from crime and strife by a knight since at least the 15th century.’

‘So’, Anna said, ‘Could it be possible…that I had been rescued by a knight who is at least 400 years old?’

‘Precisely’, Mary said just as Thomas stopped in front of the door, ‘If the legend is true, then, yes, you were.’

‘What’s all this about then?’ Thomas asked

‘Hello, Mr. Barrow’, Mary said, ‘Anna was just telling me how she was rescued earlier today from a dangerous situation by the so-called “Knight of York” – have you heard of him?’

‘Yes’, Thomas said, ‘He’s a well-known hero around these parts; helping to protect the people from harm.’

‘And to think he was within metres of Downton Abbey, whoa!’

‘Yes, it sounds amazing; I wish I’d seen him’, Thomas said.

It was then that Mary remembered something unusual about that morning.

‘By the way, Mr. Barrow’, she inquired, ‘Where were you this morning? You weren’t anywhere to be seen.’

‘Oh, yes’, Thomas replied, ‘I was downstairs in the hall as usual.’

‘Hmm…ok then’, Mary said with a suspicious look on her face.

‘Anyway’, Thomas said, ‘I’ll see you later.’

‘Ok, Mr. Barrow’, Mary said, ‘Thanks for stopping by.’

‘Hmm…’ Mary said to Anna a few seconds later, ‘Mr. Barrow was nowhere to be seen around here at the same time as your rescue, and the he suddenly showed up after the knight disappeared – it’s odd.’

‘What’s odd, milady?’ Anna asked.

‘I just wonder…’ Mary replied, ‘Why wasn’t Thomas here when the knight was, only to turn up afterwards?’

‘Come to think of it, it does sound a bit strange for him to miss out on seeing an important hero’, Anna said.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is where the story REALLY begins.

‘What the?’ he asked as he was roughly shoved into the back seat of a waiting car, ‘Who are you people and what do you want??’

‘Shut up, moron!!’ one of his captors replied, ‘One more remark like that and my iron fist meets your face!!’

‘Walter’s right, Richard!’ his older brother, Edward, said as he closed the driver’s door and started the engine, ‘Now be quiet and sit like a normal person until we reach our destination!’

‘You’ll **never** get away with this!’ Richard said as the car moved down the road, ‘The King will have a search party out for me after they realise I’m missing.

This remark was met with a devilish glare by Walter.

‘Forget about the fucking Royals!!!’ he screamed, while pointing a knife-like finger at Richard’s throat, ‘From what I can recall, **you** signed the contract during our meeting last week, thereby **surrendering** your then-current job at the Palace; in other words, you don’t work there anymore!! Have I made myself clear!?’

‘Oh, come on!’ Richard said, ‘I would _never_ do such a thing, especially if it involved _signing my life and job over_ to someone I _don’t even know_!’

As if on cue, the car turned into a dead-ended alleyway and stopped.

‘Listen here, bellend!’ Walter sneered, ‘I will **not** have my perfect memory questioned in front of my brother, especially when I have the PAPER-BASED EVIDENCE in the boot!!!’

‘I still don’t believe you’, Richard said calmly, ‘There’s no way I would have signed that, and that’s final!’

‘Hmm…’ Walter said as Edward opened one of the back doors, ‘Since you’re not going to comply, we’re just going to have to force you to.’

‘Just try it’, Richard said, ‘I am **not** getting out of this damn car for a couple of good-for-nothing arseholes like you!’

Suddenly, he was violently yanked from the vehicle and slammed against a wall.

‘Watch it, shitface!’ Edward said, ‘Or you’ll be beaten black and blue!’

The next thing Richard saw was Walter with the mischievous look of a cold-blooded killer on his face.

Suddenly, Thomas woke up with a dreadful thought.

‘Phyllis’, he said, ‘I just had a horrible feeling.’

‘What about?’ Phyllis asked.

‘It’s about Richard’, Thomas replied, ‘I think something’s wrong.’

‘But why?’ Phyllis said, ‘You said everything was fine last time you visited him.’

‘You’re right’, Thomas said, ‘Maybe I’m worrying too much. However, I can’t seem to shake this feeling off…do you think it’s possible, that he may have…may have been…abducted??’

‘What in tarnation would have given you that idea??’ Phyllis asked.

I don’t know’, Thomas said, ‘It just seemed to…come to me, out of nowhere…’

‘Thomas, I think you may be focusing on work a bit too much’, Phyllis said, ‘You need to take a decent break every now and then.’

‘Maybe you’re on to something, Phyllis’, Thomas said, ‘I’ll try to heed your advice in the future.’

‘I should think so too’, Phyllis said before leaving the hall in response to one of the bells on the bell-board ringing, ‘Anyway, see you later.’

‘Two tickets to York, please’, Edward said at the ticket counter at the station while Walter put some banknotes and coins down.

‘Thank you’, the woman on the other side said as she swapped the money with the tickets, ‘Enjoy your trip.’

‘Thank you’, Edward said before heading to their platform, with the struggling trolley-boy wheeling a large, heavy wooden crate behind them.’

‘Goodness me’, he panted while waiting for the train a few agonizing minutes later, ‘What the hell have you got in here?’

‘Oh’, Walter said, trying to think of a believable answer, ‘We’re merchants going to a market up there.’

‘Yes’, Edward said, ‘The crate is filled with our wares.’

‘I see’, the trolley-boy said just as the train rolled in, ‘Well then, I hope you make good money.’

‘Thank you’, Edward said as the crate was wheeled to the luggage car and loaded on, ‘I’m sure we will.’

After the train rolled out of the station and headed north, Walter and Edward smiled at each other while thinking about what they had just succeeded in doing, their expressions conveying their thoughts.

 _‘I can’t believe we actually pulled that off’,_ Edward thought.

 _‘I know’_ , Walter thought, _‘Richard won’t know what hit him once we arrive at our final destination; thank goodness I’m not the one stuffed in a crate!’_

 _‘Yes’_ , Edward thought, _‘Little does he know that the “contract” he signed that day wasn’t a job contract at all, but a cleverly-worded “contract of ownership.”’_

 _‘Exactly’_ , Walter thought, _‘And since he technically agreed to it, he’s now our slave who we can make do whatever job we want!’_

‘MWAHAHAHA!’ they laughed evilly as the train disappeared into a long tunnel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Richard - stuffed in a crate while his captors laugh about him becoming their slave; I can be somewhat sadistic when I want to be when it comes to writing.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my goodness! I've only just realised that I forgot to post the majority of the chapter! :O
> 
> So here's Chapter 4 take 2.
> 
> Trigger warning: Mrs. Patmore attempts to kill a cockroach.

‘Get back here you little-’ Mrs. Patmore said as she tried to squash a cockroach with a rolled-up newspaper as it crawled across the benchtop.

‘What are you doing, Mrs. Patmore?’ Thomas said, ‘Because whatever it is, beating the life out of the sink with the newspaper isn’t going to help with anything.’

‘I haven’t gone bonkers enough to think the sink needs pounding’, Mrs. Patmore said, ‘It’s this ruddy cockroach that keeps interrupting me; I’ve been trying to get rid of it for hours now, and I haven’t succeeded yet.’

‘A cockroach, eh?’ Thomas said as he walked over to the bench, ‘Well, I know exactly what to do.’

He grabbed a jar and put it over the cockroach before screwing the lid on.

‘There’, he said, ‘It’s gone.’

‘Thank you, Mr. Barrow’, Mrs. Patmore said, ‘I honestly don’t know what I would have done without you.’

‘Well, by the look of it, you would have still been at it with the newspaper for goodness knows how long’, Thomas said.

‘Not to mention the bench would have been splattered with bug juice at some point as well’, Mrs. Patmore said.

‘Anyway’, Thomas said, ‘I’m going to go and put this outside, away from the house and _especially_ the kitchen.’

‘Sounds good’, Mrs. Patmore said, ‘As long as it doesn’t come in here again.’

_‘Ugh…where am…’_ Richard thought as he woke up, only to find himself crammed inside a wooden container of some sort.

‘LET ME OUT OF HERE!!!’ he shouted while attempting to break free, ‘IS ANYBODY OUT THERE!!?’

‘Why don’t you just SHUT UP, slave!!?’ Edward asked before kicking the side of the crate hard, hurting his foot in the process.

‘OW!’ he yelped in pain while tending to the injury.

It was then the realisation hit Richard like a ton of bricks.

‘Slave?’ he asked as he booted a hole in the top of the crate, ‘Dear me…the contract; it wasn’t for a job at all! Goodness, _why_ did I even sign it?’

The next thing he could hear was clapping as he stood up.

‘Well done, Richard’, Edward said, ‘You’ll be working for me and Walter until your dying day, performing tasks that are so tedious and disgusting, not even the lowest servant would undertake them.’

‘You won’t get away with this!’ Richard said, ‘I know people in this cit…we _are_ in York, right?’

‘Yes’, Edward said, ‘What does it matter?’

‘Anyway though’, Richard said, ‘I was going to say that I _know_ people who live here and in the surrounding areas, and they’ll find out what has happened one way or another.’

‘Nonsense!!’ Edward said just as a flushing sound came from up the hall seconds before Walter walked into the room.

‘Ok, Edward’, he whispered to his brother as the glanced momentarily at Richard, ‘Should we give him his first task?’

‘Ok’, Edward whispered, ‘What do you have in mind?’

‘Well…’ Walter said as he held up a toilet plunger and brush, ‘It needs cleaning.’

‘I see’, Edward laughed before walking over to Richard.

‘Ok, twit!’ he said upon giving him the plunger and brush, ‘Your first job is to clean the toilet until it’s spotless!’

‘Ugh’, Richard said in disgust, ‘Why don’t you do it yourself?’

‘Don’t you get it, imbecile?’ Edward said, ‘That’s why **you’re** here; to do the dirty work! Now get up there and MAKE IT SHINE!!’

‘Ok, ok!’ Richard said before making a beeline for the bathroom and thinking, _‘Sheesh, you don’t have to scream like a banshee!’_

Things only got worse when he opened the door.

‘Goodness, gracious me!’ he coughed while covering his nose and mouth, ‘You could have _at least_ left the window open…’

The stench wasn’t even the worst of it; he almost vomited upon opening the toilet lid.

‘Good heavens, that’s foul!’ he said upon slamming the lid shut immediately and flushing again before opening the window for ventilation and getting to work.

‘There you go, little fellow’, Thomas said upon releasing the cockroach onto a large, green leaf far away from any buildings, ‘You’re safe now.’

However, as the insect crawled away towards the stem, something seemed to grab it from above.

 _‘What’s this?’_ Thomas thought as he pulled some overhanging leaves back, revealing a large praying mantis biting the cockroach’s head off.

‘Well…at least I bought you out here’, he sighed as he watched it being slowly devoured.

Later that night, Edward approached Richard to tell him something.

‘Right’, he said, ‘It’s time to go to bed.’

Suddenly, Richard could feel himself being dragged by the arm towards an empty room at the back of the house.

‘Ok’, Walter said, ‘Open the trapdoor!’

‘Yes’, Edward said as he went ahead and pulled a rope, causing a few floorboards to move upwards and reveal a dark set of stairs.

‘Ok, Richard’, Walter sneered as he shoved him down the stairs, ‘This is your new bedroom.’

‘Ohhh…’ Richard groaned weakly, having landed in a crumpled mess at the bottom.

However, the torture wasn’t over yet; the next thing he knew, Walter was affixing a chain and ball to one of his legs.

‘Sit down on the bed!’ he said in a threatening manner as Edward tied Richard’s hands to the head of the bed.

‘This is to make sure **you** don’t escape during the night!’ Walter said.

‘Anyway’, Edward said before he and Walter left and slammed the trapdoor shut, leaving Richard in pitch-black darkness, ‘It’s getting late. Goodnight!!’

‘Uhhh…’ Richard said after an hour and a half, ‘I can’t sleep.’

He then remembered that he was wearing a silver pendant around his neck, hidden under his clothing – he had given the matching one to Thomas on the last morning of the Royal visit.

‘Oh, Thomas’, he said, ‘Please come and rescue me.’

‘Wherever you are, Richard’, Thomas said in his bed, ‘I _will_ find and rescue you – I just know it.’

‘HEY, YOU!!’ a voice boomed down an alleyway.

‘W-what do y-you w-want from m-me?’ a man said nervously while trembling with fear.

‘Enough with the talking!’ said the owner of the booming voice upon pinning him to a wall, ‘I’m the Knight of York, and I saw what you were doing!’

‘Wh-what do you m-mean?’ the man asked.

‘Don’t play dumb, Webster!’ Thomas replied, ‘You’re coming with me right now!’

‘Ok, you caught me’, Chris said, ‘Just…please don’t send me to jail; it won’t happen again, I promise!’

What happened next confused him, as it had never been done before in 400+ years.

‘Hm…I’ve got a job for you’, Thomas said.

‘Huh?’ Chris asked.

‘I’ve got a feeling that a close friend of some guy who lives around here may be trapped somewhere in York. So, I was thinking, maybe you could help with searching?’ Thomas asked.

‘Ok’, Chris replied, ‘I will gladly help. Oh, and just who is this person?’

‘Good question’, Thomas said, ‘If I recall correctly, his name is Thomas Barrow, butler to some rich folks in the country not that far from here.’

‘Oh’, Chris said upon hearing this, ‘I think we may have met in the past at a bar.’

 _‘Yes’_ , Thomas thought, _‘And then it just_ had _to go horribly wrong as we were having the time of our lives…’_

‘Anyway’, he said, ‘We better get started; Mr. Barrow is keenly waiting for word on his friend, so we can’t afford to waste time doing nothing.’

‘I agree’, Chris said, ‘So, where do we start?’

Back at Downton, Andrew had accidentally discovered something amazing in Thomas’ bedroom.

‘Whoa!’ he gasped in amazement as he read the same note that Thomas had read the night he found the helmet before thinking, _‘Blimey, he’s the Knight of York!’_

_‘I’ve got to tell someone!’_ he thought while dashing out of the room, nearly crashing into Mr. Barrow in the process.

‘Good heavens!’ he said once he realised, ‘Sorry, Mr. Barrow, I didn’t see you there.’

‘It’s ok, ‘Andrew’, Thomas said, ‘However, you need to be more careful while walking around.’

‘Ok, Mr. Barrow’, Andrew said, ‘I’ll do that from now on.’

‘Good’, Thomas said, ‘Anyway, what were you doing in my quarters just now?’

‘Oh’, Andrew said, ‘I found something on the floor that you may be interested in.’

‘Ok’, Thomas said, ‘What was this item of significant importance?’

‘It was this…’ Andrew said when he gave him the note, ‘I couldn’t believe it; it says that you’re the Knight of York! Ridiculous, eh?’

Thomas’ eyes went wide upon knowing that the secret was out.

‘Well, at least it was you who found it’, he said, ‘And maybe what it says _isn’t_ so ridiculous after all…’

‘What do you mean?’ Andrew asked.

‘Come with me and I’ll show you’, Thomas replied as they both entered the bedroom before closing the door.

‘Right’, Thomas said as he placed a metal helmet on the bed.

‘Is that…?’ Andrew asked with wide eyes.

‘Yes’, Thomas said when he put it on, causing the rest of the suit to magically appear, ‘I admit that I am the Knight of York.’

‘Amazing!’ Andrew said, ‘Does anyone else know of this?’

‘They can’t know’, Thomas said when he took the helmet off again and turned back to normal, ‘It’s very important that you keep the secret; I technically wasn’t supposed to tell you.’

‘Ok’, Andrew said, ‘The secret is safe with me.’

‘Good’, Thomas said, ‘Anyway, it’s time to get back to work.’

‘I agree’, Andrew said before leaving, ‘See you later, Mr. Barrow.’

 _‘Time to put this away’_ , Thomas said as he put the helmet into a box in the bottom of the wardrobe before leaving for upstairs himself, _‘At least the secret’s still safe…’_

**Meanwhile…**

_‘Hmm…’_ Chris thought while on his way home, _‘I just wonder about the Knight of York…his eyes seemed to be a familiar grey, as was his voice – just like…_ Thomas Barrow _!’_


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are, the climax of the story! (YAY!!)  
> Enjoy!
> 
> Trigger Warnings:  
> 1\. Mildly graphic depiction of death (it's a bit bloody) - not too bad though;
> 
> 2\. Richard is beaten a few times by his captors, all in the sake of the plot (I must be a sadist I think.)

‘OW!!’ Richard yelped in pain, ‘What was _that_ for?’

‘You lousy fool!!’ Edward screamed as he slapped him in the face hard, ‘Is _this_ what you call **clean**!??’

‘Look, I’m sorry’, Richard said, ‘It’s just that I’m so tired – I haven’t got any decent sleep for the last week!’

‘Hm…’ Edward said, ‘That’s **NO EXCUSE** for not getting the job done!!’

Suddenly, Richard felt an excruciating pain shooting up his spine as Walter struck him from behind with a large metal shovel, causing him to collapse.

‘Aahhh…’ he moaned weakly as he felt a cold hand around his neck in search of something.

‘We want the necklace!’ Edward said, ‘Where is it??’

‘How should I know?’ Richard said before his foot was stomped on, causing him to yell in pain.

‘Ah!’ Walter said as he forcibly removed the pendant, ‘Here it is.’

‘Thanks, Walter’, Edward said before kicking Richard in the shin, ‘This will sell for a small fortune at the market tomorrow.’

‘I agree’, Walter said.

_‘Noooo…’_ Richard thought upon hearing this while hot tears ran down his cheeks, _‘I’ve failed you, Thomas; I’ve lost the pendant!’_

‘Right, Chris’, Thomas (in the suit) said to him that Sunday at 1:25 p.m., ‘Time to go to the market.’

‘Ok’, Chris said as they merged with the crowds on the streets, ‘Where to first?’

‘Remember, we are not here to buy anything; we are looking for any trace of Ric…I mean, Mr. Barrow’s friend.’

However, this small slip-up only seemed to confirm Chris’ suspicions.

 _‘I knew it!’_ he thought, _‘Thomas Barrow_ IS _the Knight of York!!’_

Suddenly, Thomas noticed something glistening at a stall on the corner.

‘Hey’, he said before they walked over, ‘What’s that?’

‘Whatever it is’, Chris said, ‘It sure is shiny.’

Upon closer inspection, Thomas noticed that the object in question was the match to his pendant; it even had the engraving - R.E & T.B – on the back of the shield.

 _‘Goodness’_ , he thought, _‘I’ve found the matching pendant!’_

‘Excuse me’, he said to the man behind the table, ‘I would like to buy this please.’

‘Sure’, the man, Edward, said, ‘And who’s the lucky lady who’s being gifted with this?’

 _‘Lady?’_ Thomas thought as he recoiled, _‘I don’t think so…’_

‘Uh…’ he said, ‘It’s for my sister; she’s been looking for one of these for years and I’ve finally found one to surprise her with.’

‘I see’, Edward said as Thomas gave him a few banknotes in exchange for the pendant, ‘I’m sure she’ll love it.’

‘Me too’, Thomas said, ‘Goodbye and thank you!’

‘You too’, Edward said, ‘By the way, I like the outfit!’

‘Ok, Chris. Time to…’ he said before noticing he was nowhere to be seen, ‘Chris??’

As if on cue, he heard female voices giggling behind a wooden building.

 _‘What’s going on here?’_ he thought as he walked up to the building and peeked around the far side that was concealed from public view.

‘Come on, Chris, please don’t leave’, one of the females said seductively.

‘Sorry’, Chris said calmly, ‘But I must be off; my friend is waiting for me.’

‘Well, they can wait just a little bit longer, the other woman said before she exposed her breasts.

However, Chris just stared blankly with a confused expression.

‘Please cover those up’, he said in a normal voice, ‘I know what you’re trying to do, but it’s not working.’

This left the two women in shock and confused.

‘You mean…’ they asked, ‘You’re _immune_ to the alluring beauty and figure of the female body??’

‘Yes, I suppose I am’, Chris replied, ‘Been that way since age 13 at least. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must be off.’

‘Ok then’, I guess’, the two women said simultaneously, ‘Goodbye.’

‘Hey, Thomas…or whoever you are’, Chris said upon running up to the metal-cladded figure, ‘I heard that…’

‘Good heavens, Chris!’ Thomas said, ‘Where have you been?’

‘Never mind that’, Chris said, ‘Anyway, I see you’ve found what you were looking for.’

‘Yes’, Thomas said before using the same cover story that he had used earlier with Edward, ‘I bought this for my sister’s birthday in a couple of months.’

It was then that Chris remembered noticing something about Edward’s stall.

 _‘The symbol!’_ he thought, referring to the imprint on the tablecloth, ‘ _I_ knew _I’d seen it somewhere before!’_

‘Come on’, he said as they made a beeline for the exit, ‘I believe I may know where the missing person is!’

‘HEY!!!’ Walter screamed later that evening in the kitchen, ‘I told you **NOT** to take **any** of those cookies out of the jar!!!’

‘Well, _sorry_ ’, Richard said, Besides, you can always make another batch.’

‘Get over here, damn twat!!’ Walter shouted before Edward shoved him from behind.

‘This is what you get for disobedience!!’ Walter shouted upon tightly jamming Richard’s fingers between two blocks of wood.

‘OOOWWW!!!’ he shrilled, ‘What was that for _this_ time???’

‘Be quiet, stupid fuck!’ Walter shouted as he struck him over the head with a chair leg before he collapsed, which was when Edward booted him in the back and paralyzed him momentarily.

‘That’s quite enough out of you, bellend!’ Edward said as Richard lay motionless on the floor, ‘Oh, and we sold your **stupid** necklace to some guy in what looked to be a suit of armour at the market!!’

 _‘The Knight of York!’_ Richard thought upon hearing this, _‘It must be him!’_

‘Let’s get out of here’, Walter said when he opened the kitchen door.

‘Indeed’, Edward said upon walking through and closing it again, ‘Let the old prick suffer in silence.’

‘Hm…I thought so…’ Mary said to Phyllis after dinner that evening.

‘What all this about, then?’ Thomas asked at the door.

‘Oh, Mr. Barrow’, Phyllis said, ‘We were just talking about how I saw what seemed to be a bright white light coming from behind your door this morning.’

‘Oh, that’, Thomas said, ‘There’s a perfectly logical explanation…’

‘Yes, and I think we all know what that is…’ Mary said before finally speaking the truth, ‘You’re the Knight of York!’

‘Don’t be ridiculous, milady!’ Thomas said in a shocked voice, ‘Of course I’m not!’

‘Well then’, Phyllis said, ‘If that’s the case, then _why_ did I see a metal helmet on your bed after you’d left a few seconds later??’

‘Honestly’, Thomas said, ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’

‘Come on, Mr. Barrow’, Phyllis said, ‘Would you lie to one of your best childhood friends?’

‘Or to me?’ Mary asked.

‘No, I suppose not’, Thomas said after a few long seconds of silence before finally admitting, ‘Your suspicions are correct; the Knight of York is living here at Downton.’

The next morning, Richard got the biggest surprise after waking up.

‘AAAHHH!’ he shrieked upon seeing a metal-cladded figure hovering above him, ‘W-who are y-you?’

‘Shhhh’, the mysterious figure said as he put a finger up to Richard’s lips, ‘I’m the Knight of York and I’ve come to rescue you.’

This realisation left Richard speechless.

‘I don’t know what to say’, he said, ‘Thank you!’

‘Alright, Chris’, Thomas said, ‘Let’s get him out of here.’

‘On to it’, Chris said while manipulating the chain and ball attached to Richard’s leg.

 _‘Wait a minute…’_ Richard thought upon hearing this name just as he was given something.

‘I found your pendant for you’, Thomas said before Richard noticed a pair of grey eyes through the slats in the opening of the helmet.

 _‘Thomas???’_ he thought as he stood up.

‘Yes’, Thomas admitted before taking the helmet off, ‘It is me.’

‘I can’t believe it!’ Richard exclaimed, ‘You’re the Knight of York!’

‘Yes, I am’, Thomas said, ‘And I’ve come to get you out of here.’

Suddenly, as if on cue, Walter and Edward rushed down the stairs armed with bows and arrows.

‘Oi!’ they shouted simultaneously, ‘What are you two turds doing down here??’

‘You…’ Thomas said angrily, ‘You abducted my…friend and forced him into doing degrading work for your bidding, only to treat him like shit in return!!’

‘Hey!’ Richard said in shock, having never heard Thomas use this word before as Chris’ jaw dropped.

‘Sorry about the language, guys’, Thomas said to them before turning to face Walter and Edward again, only to see that they were now accompanied by two women.

 _‘Oh,_ Chris thought, _‘Not you again…’_

‘Ok boys’, Walter said, ‘Meet our neighbours, Martha and Polly.’

‘Prepare to be amazed’, Martha said. ‘The next few minutes will have you swept off your feet.

‘Ok, girls’, Edward said, ‘Let’s start then, shall we?’

‘Indeed, we shall’, Martha said before she and Polly briefly retreated behind a wall and emerged again in only their bras and underwear.

‘Well’, Edward said as Walter went into a trance, having been allured by the sight before him, ‘Won’t be long now…’

However, Chris rolled his eyes while Richard and Thomas stared blankly before Richard yawned.

‘I don’t get it’, Thomas said, ‘This is boring!’

‘Wha…’ Edward said, ‘It’s not working! Right then, time for plan B!’ Girls?’

‘Yes’, Martha said before she and Polly stripped naked, causing Walter to fall over in amazement.

‘Seriously, guys’, Thomas said, ‘We need to get going!’

‘Amazing!’ Walter said, ‘You’re all immune to feminine beauty.’

‘We did it, guys’, Thomas said when he turned to face Chris and Richard, unaware that Edward was aiming an arrow right at his neck.

‘Goodbye, twit!’ he sneered evilly upon releasing and sending it hurtling towards him ‘Hehehe!’

‘Thomas!’ Chris said before darting between him and the arrow, ‘Look out…’

It was then that the arrow struck Chris in the neck, causing him to collapse.

‘What the?’ Thomas asked upon turning around, only to find Chris in a crumpled mess on the floor, surrounded by an ever-growing pool of blood.

‘Christopher!’ Thomas shrieked upon kneeling down, ‘No…please don’t…’

Unfortunately, his worst fears were realised when he discovered there was no pulse or heartbeat.

‘You…’ Thomas said while glaring at Edward and pointing, ‘You **killed** an innocent man who was only trying to help!!’

‘WHO CARES!!’ Edward said, ‘You shouldn’t have been down here in the first place!’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yeah, I decided to kill Chris off with an arrow to the neck - sorry Chris (RIP) - but truth be told, I'm a Barellis shipper and I won't let anything get in the way of these two.


	6. Chapter 6

A couple of days later, Mrs. Patmore was scanning through the notices in the back of the newspaper when something in the obituaries caught her eye.

 _‘Dear me’_ , she thought when she handed the paper to Phyllis at the table before saying, ‘Someone ought to tell Mr. Barrow.’

‘Goodness me, you’re right!’ Phyllis said in a shocked voice.

‘Right about what?’ Thomas asked upon entering the hall.

‘Better see for yourself, Mr. Barrow’, Phyllis replied when she gave him the paper, ‘You know that Chris Webster guy? He’s dead!’

‘Good heavens’, Thomas said while feigning shock and disbelief, ‘It says here he was struck in the neck by an arrow.’

‘I know’, Phyllis said, ‘Like _who_ would be dumb enough to use a bow and arrow to kill someone in broad daylight in the city of York? It just doesn’t make sense.’

‘No’, Thomas said, ‘Just another senseless act of violence that took the life of an innocent person.’

‘Anyway’, Phyllis said, ‘The funeral’s tomorrow afternoon at the village church if you want to go.’

‘Yes’, Thomas said, ‘I might as well go and pay my respects.’

The service was a sombre and sad affair, made worse since there was only a total of nine people in the church; even Father Travis didn’t seem to be enthusiastic about conducting the funeral as he walked up the isle and stood behind the altar.

‘Everyone’, the old priest said in a droning voice - a clear sign of a lack of interest (or basic sympathy, for that matter) – ‘We are gathered here today to remember Christopher Fitzgerald Webster.’

As if on cue, a middle-aged woman sitting in the front row stood up and walked to the alter.

‘And now for a speech from the deceased’s sister, Janice O’Connor-Webster’, Father Travis said before standing to one side.

‘Greetings, everyone’, Janice said, ‘I am Chris’ second eldest sister, Janice. My brother was the youngest out of nine children – two girls and seven boys, myself included – and was bought up in a kind, loving Christian family in Liverpool; we were home-schooled, presumably to protect us from the “evils of the world” and went to Church every Sunday. We were well-known within the community, having a large circle of friends who would often drop by to visit on the weekends or during summer.’

_‘Sounds like a nice life’_ , Thomas thought as he listed, _‘I wonder what went wrong?’_

‘However’, Janice said with the slightest hint of rage in her voice, ‘On August 16, 1900, our lives changed forever; Mum and Dad’s suspicions about Chris turned out to be correct.’

_‘Oh no’_ , Thomas thought, _‘Here it comes…’_

‘Anyway’, Janice seethed with tears welling in her eyes’, ‘I’ll never forget hearing shouting in the living room when our parents told Chris that they had seen him kissing another churchgoer…of the _male_ variety!’

It was then that Father Travis glared angrily at Thomas from the other side of the room.

 _‘What?’_ Thomas thought, _‘I have just as much of a right to be here as anyone else!’_

‘After some time arguing and screaming at each other, they made it perfectly clear to Chris that he was not welcome in the house or community anymore; he packed his suitcase and left that night for York.’

‘Goodbye, Chris’, she seethed while sobbing before leaving to sit down, ‘I’ll miss you.’

‘Thank you, Janice’, Father Travis said, ‘Now, is there anyone else who would like to say something?’

Upon hearing this, Thomas stood up and proceeded to walk up front before being ordered to sit back down by Father Travis.

‘Not **you**!’ he boomed before saying, ‘Anyone _but_ Thomas Barrow.’

__

Silence.

‘Very well’, he said, ‘I suppose that concludes this part of the service.’

**At the cemetery…**

‘Seriously, Father’, Thomas said, ‘Why didn’t you allow me to say a few words back there? Chris was a friend!’

‘You know all too well why, Thomas’, Father Travis said as they approached the vacant plot, all dug up and ready to be filled.

‘Alright, guys’, he said as he gave a slight nod, ‘Lower him in.’

Over the next few minutes, the coffin was slowly lowered in as people bowed their heads in prayer.

‘Thank you, Chris’, Thomas said while sobbing before thinking, _‘If it hadn’t been for you, I and Richard wouldn’t be together.’_

At approximately 1:30 the following afternoon, Thomas told Richard about the previous day’s traumatic experience.

‘…It was as if we were talking about a brick or a piece of metal!’ Thomas said, ‘No-one seemed to care, especially Chris’ sister, Janice, or Father Travis; I wasn’t even allowed to give a speech!’

‘I’m so sorry that I couldn’t make it yesterday’, Richard said, ‘It sounds like it was an awfully tragic affair, especially with only you three and six other people who didn’t even make a sound.’

‘I know’, Thomas sobbed as Richard hugged him, ‘I’m sure the other people were there if only to have an excuse to be out of the house or off work for the afternoon as well. They probably returned to normal life as soon as they left the cemetery; as if he’d never existed.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Chris! :( - Only nine people (including Thomas and Father Travis, obviously) turned up to the funeral and yet not one cared enough to mourn him; even his sister said her speech with hatred in her voice. 
> 
> (I feel awful for writing this chapter, but I thought it was fitting to the story [in some dark, twisted way...])


End file.
